Christopher Edley Jr.

Chris Edley
Dean of the University of California, Berkeley School of Law
In office 2004–2013
Preceded by	Bob Berring (acting)
Succeeded by	Gillian Lester (acting)
Personal details
Born	Christopher Fairfield Edley Jr. (1953-01-13)January 13, 1953 Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
Died	May 10, 2024(2024-05-10) (aged 71)
Political party	Democratic
Spouse	Maria Echaveste
Parent(s)	Christopher F. Edley, Sr., Zaida Coles Edley
Education	Swarthmore College (BA) Harvard University (JD, MPP)

Christopher Fairfield Edley Jr. (January 13, 1953 – May 10, 2024) was an American lawyer and the Dean of the University of California, Berkeley School of Law from 2004 to 2013. He served as President of the Opportunity Institute, an organization he co-founded with Hillary Clinton advisor Ann O'Leary.

Life and career

Edley was born on January 13, 1953 to Christopher F. Edley, Sr. and Zaida Coles Edley. He was a leading figure in Democratic policy circles for four decades, serving as a senior member of five presidential campaigns, as an economic policy and budget official under Presidents Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton, and as a chair of the Obama-Biden transition team. In 2011 he was appointed by U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan as co-chair of the congressionally chartered National Commission on Equity and Excellence in Education.

After receiving his undergraduate degree in mathematics from Swarthmore College he attended Harvard Law School, where he later served as a professor, teaching Administrative Law and founding the Harvard Civil Rights Project. He served as an advisor to President Clinton's One America Initiative, was a member of the United States Commission on Civil Rights, and chaired President Clinton's 1998 Affirmative Action Review. In the 2008 presidential election, he supported and advised candidate Barack Obama, one of his former students at Harvard Law School. He was elected to the Common Cause National Governing Board in 2010. On August 16, 2013, he announced his intention to resign as Berkeley Law dean, effective December 31, 2013.

According to legal journalist Emily Bazelon, Edley "has written thoughtfully and moderately about affirmative action."

Edley was married to Maria Echaveste, former deputy chief of staff for U.S. President Bill Clinton. He died on May 10, 2024, at the age of 71.

Published works

• Edley, Christopher Jr. (1998). Not All Black and White: Affirmative Action and American Values. Farrar, Straus and Giroux. ISBN 0-374-52541-2.
• Administrative Law: Rethinking Judicial Control of Bureaucracy

External links

• Appearances on C-SPAN
• President Clinton's Affirmative Action Review, 1998
• Faculty Bio